Radio’s Silver Lining

Valerie Geller

Note: The following is from a keynote address at an international gathering of broadcasters in Toronto.

EVERY DARK CLOUD HAS A SILVER LINING

These are challenging days for radio. Hit by the “perfect storm" of quickly changing technology, married to the global economic climate, broadcasters are facing leaner times and working even harder to create compelling radio. And then there are those disturbing rumors of radio’s imminent demise. 

But, there’s plenty of good news if you’re willing to embrace the new along with the old.  (Do you actually really CARE if it comes out of a traditional terrestrial black box, or your computer, phone or even the fillings in your teeth, if the content is compelling and relevant?)
 
THE POWER OF RADIO

If you understand the POWER and magic of this medium, what the radio can mean to someone who is alone in a room or in a car… and how with a touch of a button, that person NEVER has to feel alone… You understand that what we have in radio remains one of the most powerful ways to connect with an audience.  And yes, it’s true that the new technologies can offer consumers much of what radio uniquely offered in the past; immediacy, breaking news stories, and of course new music—radio’s power of the imagination, along with the intimacy of the one-on-one connection with a personality through storytelling, still uniquely offers listeners experiences and “journeys” they can only get from the radio.
 
DON’T LEAVE HOME OR STAY HOME WITHOUT ONE

And according to FEMA's Federal Emergency Management Services report: next to water, a flashlight, a candle and matches, a battery operated radio is the number one item advised to place in a household emergency kit. 
 
BETTER MEASURMENT SHOWS BIGGER AUDIENCES
In PPM markets, broadcasters formerly working with only Arbitron recall based diaries, have been delighted to discover that there are actually larger numbers of people listening to radio than we'd thought. 

Traditionally radio has always done well during hard economic times.   In past recessions, when money was tight, radio was looked at as “free entertainment.  More people may find they’re listening to radio (or the radio’s audio on the internet) because they’re not spending as much on other, “outside” entertainment, like live concerts, sporting events, films, theater, etc.

CREATIVITY COSTS NOTHING

When there’s little money around, the blank canvas can become a place where creativity can thrive. Creativity costs nothing.  And now is the time to explore new ideas, risk taking and experiment, using the three rules of Creating Powerful Radio:
1.     Tell the Truth
2.     Make it Matter
3.     NEVER be boring
I work all over the world and while radio revenues may be down in parts of the United States, that’s not the whole story and it’s not true for many other places in the rest of the world, where radio is very healthy. 
 
Stefan Moller, head of Radio-Media in Finland, just announced that Finnish commercial broadcasters enjoyed record profits from radio this year.  Radio is up in Finland by 7.4% and growing.  Moeller predicts it will be up by 10% in 2009, based on the January/Feb/March results. Finland is on the cutting edge of the technological changes, and is way ahead us in many technical areas… and they invented and are the home of NOKIA.  Radio is also booming in Ireland, where public radio’s RTE' is enjoying record numbers of listeners.  48%, nearly half of the population of Ireland checks daily in with RTE’s morning show.
 
SELL FOR SUCCESS
 
Another success story: In Mexico City, a market of 20 million, turns out most people there are listening to radio! Grupo Radio Centro announced a healthy increase in profits in the final quarter of 2008, up by 15%.   And net income growth of nearly 27%. What are they doing?  The company attributes its profits and market share gains to "higher advertising expenditures by clients and by offering more attractive sales packages."  They were willing to deal on rates, and Radio Centro reports they're now adding to their sales force.
 
INSPIRE WITH PROGRAMMING – FIND SOLUTIONS, NOT “JUST PROBLEMS”
 
If it’s all bad news on the air, only problems without presenting solutions, we’ll likely lose listeners.  Audiences tend to move on if it’s all “bad news, they actually can’t take it.  It’s too much.  To keep audiences coming back for more, many stations in North America, are using the opportunity to  inspire and entertain their listeners by presenting  “Good news segments,” stories focusing on solutions on how people are coping, with the emphasis on powerful storytelling and concentrating on the positive. 
 
DO WELL AND DO GOOD!
 
KGO radio in San Francisco now broadcasts a regularly scheduled daily “good news feature,” and on WHAS in Louisville, Kentucky, popular talk host Francene Cucinello is broadcasting want ads on her radio show – and helping unemployed people get jobs.  Because of her  humor, storytelling and personality, she’s growing her audience AND at the same time helping people.
 
WHAT ELSE ARE STATIONS DOING RIGHT?
 
Most successful stations have begun working effectively across multiple platforms, and branding their product.   But mostly they are working hard to create relevant content for listeners, no matter what the medium.  
 
 
EVERYONE CAN USE A GOOD LAUGH
 
When times are tough, humor be comes an essential survival tool.  Nothing helps a listener get through a bad day like a good laugh.  Genuine humor attracts listeners, so it will help you grow your audience.
 
REMEMBER IT’S WHAT COMES OUT OF THE SPEAKERS THAT MATTERS!

Never forget that the content is our product!  I once noticed an empty clear plastic box prominently placed on the desk of a station manager.  I asked him: “Why do you keep an empty box?”  (He had a fairly messy desk, and I pointed out that he’d have more room if he got rid of it.) He looked at me incredulously and said: “Valerie, this is NOT an empty box. This is filled with AIR.  It’s what we make and sell here! 

Radio has magic.  And that magic has withstood technological changes, global recessions and depressions in the past. There’s no reason for radio NOT to continue and to thrive.   Because radio is not really about radio.  It’s about life and the struggle to be a human being and getting through the day.  Radio connects people to each other, to community and to life   No matter what the economic situation, radio is at core, a public service. Don’t miss any opportunity to make the world in which your station operates a better place.  If you serve your public:  Inform, entertain, inspire, persuade and connect, listeners will stick with you. 
 
VALERIE GELLER is a broadcast consultant and author of – “Creating Powerful Radio - Getting, Keeping & Growing Audiences,” (2007 Focal Press) and President of Geller Media International, working with more than 500 stations in 30 countries to help grow audiences. As a speaker, seminar leader and coach-consultant, Geller helps radio and TV managers, programmers, on-air personalities, producers, and news departments to increase their ratings through powerful content.  For more information: www.gellermedia.com  for more on the book: www.creatingpowerfulradio.com  Email Valerie@gellermedia.com  Phone 212 580-3385